The Academic Staff Union of Universities teachers, on Tuesday, threatened to go on strike if the Federal Government fails to meet their demand.

ASUU Lagos zone Coordinator, Prof. Olusiji Sowande, said this during a briefing at the University of Lagos.

The union said the Federal Government has not met the terms of the 2009 agreement it signed with the union and has also refused to adequately fund the education sector.

He noted that as of the third quarter of this year, the government owed universities N605bn following the 2013 ASUU-FGN memorandum of understanding.

Sowande said, “Our union has continued to bring up issues of concern about the governance of our universities because it forms part of our professional and moral responsibility.

“We are disappointed that the federal and state governments are not responding to our consistent appeals for reasons to bring about genuine transformation, driven by highly motivated human capital in the education sector.”

Sowande said the union would be forced to embark on strike if the government fails to meet their demand.

He added, “Embarking on strike has never been a favoured choice, given that our members feel and suffer the most during and after every strike. It is unfortunate that the only language the government appears to respect and listen to is that of strike. Our union has, in the past if it becomes inevitable, would once again sacrifice the comfort of its members and take up the patriotic duty of rescuing our education system.

“In order to forestall this avoidable crisis, we appeal to all genuinely progressive individuals and groups to prevail on the Nigerian government to arrest a brewing and potentially combustible situation in the university system. We are using this medium to draw attention to our cause because we do not want Nigerians to blame us whenever the strike starts.”

ASUU also urged the government to remove Prof. Ishaq Oloyede as the new Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board Registrar, saying he made the University of Ilorin, a “garrison university” during his time as vice-chancellor.

Azeez